preview

Protein Supplementation

Decent Essays

Protein supplementation is most commonly carried out by athletes who rely on the protein for the repair and growth of cells within the muscles, to aid recovery of the body post exercise and possibly for the increase in muscle size. At present the effects of protein supplementation are not fully understood as many studies have failed to meet a general consensus (Wolfe, 2000).
Protein Excess
Body of Text
It is often said that those on high protein diets will increase body fat than those not on these diets. A study was carried out by Bray et al. (2012) to see what would happen when subjects overeat under the following conditions: a low protein diet, a normal protein diet and an excess protein diet, on energy expenditure, lean body mass and body …show more content…

When an athlete is in an energy balance their input of energy equals their output. For this athlete if they have an excess of protein it must be noted where the excess is coming from, i.e. from a deficit of lipids or carbohydrate. If there is a deficit of lipids it would not be as serious as if there was a deficit of carbohydrates. If an athlete had a deficit of carbohydrates their physical performance could be at risk of depletion (Phillips, Moore and Tang, 2007).
With regards to excessive protein consumption there are many contradicting studies that argue on either side of excessive protein having a harmful impact on the body. It appears that the most detrimental effect for an athlete would be if the excess protein meant there was a decreased carbohydrate intake (Tipton and Wolfe, 2004). Decreased carbohydrate intake can cause
Protein Timing
An aspect of great importance in relation to protein supplementation is the timing in which it is ingested. Protein supplementation should be consumed immediately after or up to an hour after resistance training to attain the full benefit of the nutrient (Phillips, Moore and Tang,

Get Access